Smashing Pumpkins and Smash Mouth Clash Over ‘Shrek’

Smashing Pumpkins and Smash Mouth -- who have little in common, aside from their popularity in the ‘90s and the fact that both have the word smash in their names -- are now engaged in Twitter warfare over an ogre.

According to the AV Club, Corgan, posting on Instagram, told a fan that his band’s song “Untitled” had been considered for use in the first Shrek movie.

“We were offered the end credit song for Shrek 1,” Corgan wrote. “But the offer was withdrawn and given to Smashmouth [sic] (who had hit with Monkees song).”

This bit of information is surprising; Shrek ended with a joyful singalong of the Monkees’ “I’m a Believer,” beginning with Smash Mouth’s faithful rendition of the song, followed by a run through the tune by the character Donkey, voiced by Eddie Murphy. (It's also worth noting that the movie's opening features Smash Mouth's "All Star.")

If you’ve seen the movie one or two or ten or 300 times, you might wonder what an ending sequence soundtracked by “Untitled” might have felt like. Certainly the tone would have changed, were producers to have replaced “I’m a believer, I couldn’t leave her if I tried" with “Anyone can hold a promise / Not everyone can feel honored / To be in love, to feel love / All around.”

You might say the producers made the right call. Or, if you’re Smash Mouth, you might respond by essentially calling Corgan a liar.

“Actually we said no and Michael Austin from Dreamworks [sic] kept calling,” the band posted on its Twitter feed. “That went on for over a month. We assume multiple bands we're [sic] asked. If it feeds Billy's ego to think they we're first let him think that. Def would have been a darker approach. @THE_EELS are on it & others.”

The gauntlet has been dropped. Anticipation is growing. We eagerly await Corgan’s response.